New Gamasutra HR interviews

[Pinky_Powers]

Definitely. I need to take a nap.

[Viktoria]

The drama over cutscenes merits a bumper bag of popcorn, and I'm more than happy to share.
On a serious note, why are people complaining about cut-scenes now? I find the cinematography fantastic.

[Fluffis]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

The drama over cutscenes merits a bumper bag of popcorn, and I'm more than happy to share.
On a serious note, why are people complaining about cut-scenes now? I find the cinematography fantastic.

I thought we'd complained about them since we heard about them the first time...? I know I have.

Anywho: I think it's fair to say that the main complaint is cut-scenes replacing actual playing, and interrupting action. The vent conversation, the "Box Guard" arriving, the "A Bomb!" scene, TP (non-interactive) take-downs.

The problem is in fact illustrated by your own choice of word: "cinematography". This isn't supposed to be a movie. I know I want to play the game; not watch it.

BTW: I'll have some of those popcorns.

[WildcatPhoenix]

Originally Posted by Fluffis

I thought we'd complained about them since we heard about them the first time...? I know I have.

....

The problem is in fact illustrated by your own choice of word: "cinematography". This isn't supposed to be a movie. I know I want to play the game; not watch it.

No kidding. I feel like we've explained our position on this a thousand times. Cinema and video games are two entirely different forms of entertainment/art. Scripted, non-interactive, mid-mission cutscenes are selling video games extremely short of their potential for player-driven storytelling.

To those who doubt my sincerity on this, I BELIEVE HUMAN REVOLUTION WILL BE FUN. Sure, it'll be cool to play through and kick lots of ass with claymore augs and takedown arm blades and whatnot. And you know what? Modern Warfare 2 was fun, for awhile. And it was dumb as hell. But I played it for about a month, put the controller down, and haven't thought about it since. Not once.

Whereas with Deus Ex, I still go back and play through the game at least a couple times a year. And I still find new lines of dialogue, new datacubes/e-mails, new and interesting things about a game that has yet to be equalled. I think it's a shame HR is selling itself short of the heritage Warren Spector and Ion Storm began.

[jtr7]

How does one know there are enough complaints worth complaining about without knowing the nature of the complaints, and why ask if not to encourage more?

[FrankCSIS]

Scripted, non-interactive, mid-mission cutscenes are selling video games extremely short of their potential for player-driven storytelling.

Pandora Directive, by far the best FMV game I've played, was filled with really amusing, and sometimes thrilling filmed scenes, which showed the potential of FMV. But one thing I will never forget is Aaron Conners saying pretty much every cutscene you see in the game, as fun as they might be, were due to technical limitations. Every action scene they could not do in first person, basically, were shot with live actors.

Funny thing, there is one bit when you track down a killer all the way to the roof, and sneak up on him for a takedown. The "playing" part ends as you reach his back, and first person transits into a filmed takedown. Chris said he really wanted to have the fight in-game, in first person, but they simply couldn't do it at the time. In light of the third person takedowns, I find this statement to be rather amusing, over 14 years later.

[Viktoria]

Originally Posted by Fluffis

I thought we'd complained about them since we heard about them the first time...?

So, you're just jumping on the bandwagon then.

Anywho: I think it's fair to say that the main complaint is cut-scenes replacing actual playing, and interrupting action. The vent conversation, the "Box Guard" arriving, the "A Bomb!" scene, TP (non-interactive) take-downs.

Oh well, each to his own. I find that cutscenes can enhance the game experience.

The problem is in fact illustrated by your own choice of word: "cinematography". This isn't supposed to be a movie. I know I want to play the game; not watch it.

BUT, it isn't a movie. It IS a game. As already said, the cinematography looks gorgeous... so there is no "problem" as far as I am concerned.

BTW: I'll have some of those popcorns.

I'll think about it...























Kidding.

Originally Posted by jtr7

... and why ask if not to encourage more?

I know, I know. I have a really naughty streak.

[lithos]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

I find the cinematography fantastic.

And I found the gameplay of The Battleship Potemkin just awesome.

[Fluffis]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

So, you're just jumping on the bandwagon then.

There wasn't a bandwagon when I started.

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

Oh well, each to his own. I find that cutscenes can enhance the game experience.

Oh well, each to his own.

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

BUT, it isn't a movie. It IS a game. As already said, the cinematography looks gorgeous... so there is no "problem" as far as I am concerned.

Every time the player is removed from control, and becomes a passive on-looker, you come closer to it being a movie. Every time you press one button and the character performs a sequence of actions, you come closer to this: Dragon's Lair. The ultimate in cinematography-driven gameplay... released in 1983.

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

I'll think about it...

Kidding.

Phew! you had me worried there

[WildcatPhoenix]

Originally Posted by lithos

And I found the gameplay of The Battleship Potemkin just awesome.

Hehehe, I see what you did there.

[Shralla]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

The drama over cutscenes merits a bumper bag of popcorn, and I'm more than happy to share.
On a serious note, why are people complaining about cut-scenes now? I find the cinematography fantastic.

What? Even with everybody on here thinking I'm some sort of "apologist," cutscenes are one thing that I've never given the A-OK to. There is no reason to have cutscenes, and if the gameplay demos we've seen/heard are any indication, we're going to be getting a lot of them. Just what part of eavesdropping from a vent requires a cutscene that has nothing to do with you or anybody you're interacting with? Do they think that people are too stupid to listen to conversations from vents anymore, and that they need to put in a cutscene so people will pay attention?

[Viktoria]

Originally Posted by lithos

And I found the gameplay of The Battleship Potemkin just awesome.

If it rocks your boat, then it must be good.

Originally Posted by Fluffis

...you come closer to Dragon's Lair. The ultimate in cinematography-driven gameplay... released in 1983.

Hehe, but I don't think DX:HR will be anything like DL, so don't panic.

Originally Posted by Shralla

...we're going to be getting a lot of them.
Just what part of eavesdropping from a vent requires a cutscene that has nothing to do with you or anybody you're interacting with? Do they think that people are too stupid to listen to conversations from vents anymore, and that they need to put in a cutscene so people will pay attention?

What do you call a "lot of them"? Besides, if the gameplay is huge then the cutscenes will seem minimal by comparison, no? You're free to disagree with that of course, just my own assumption and not something I'm worried about personally. The vent cutscene isn't a problem for me either tbh, and I don't think they added it because they think people are too stupid to listen to convos from vents. Perhaps more a case of wishing to show the player a closer view of the characters' facial expressions and also the environment, for example. Still, if you find this a problem then that is your prerogative, of course.

[Mindmute]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

Perhaps more a case of wishing to show the player a closer view of the characters' facial expressions and also the environment, for example. Still, if you find this a problem then that is your prerogative, of course.

If we want to see the environment, we just need to look around. The character's expressions are also seen in detail in the dialogues, especially in the "social combats" and you supposedly just had one with the bartender. That cutscene *is* a way of advancing the story, since the info you need to continue is presented there.
If it were just for show, they'd have other places they could put them in, like at the start the mission area or inside an already ongoing conversation and that would be very less intrusive.
That placement screams "We were afraid you'd leave before the conversation was over and therefore miss the critical info, so here's a cutscene", it's not just Shralla thinking that.

[Viktoria]

Originally Posted by Mindmute

If we want to see the environment, we just need to look around...

No need to state the obvious, I do understand the reasoning; I'm just willing to accept an alternative to the view-from-vent only scenario; that's all.

[Mindmute]

Originally Posted by MyImmortal

No need to state the obvious, I do understand the reasoning; I'm just willing to accept an alternative to the view-from-vent only scenario; that's all.

The thing is that this alternative isn't gameplay, it's a cinematic, and contributes nothing to overall game level. It just forces the player to watch a scripted scene through a new perspective for no reason whatsoever, for me and most others judging by the general comments, it just jars the player out of living the experience into seeing it for a few moments.

[Viktoria]

Yes, I get this reasoning too but personally don't find cutscenes to be out-of-the-ordinary, or that they necessarily break immersion. But we're all different.

[Pinky_Powers]

Cutscenes have been used in excellent games in the past, and they'll be used in excellent games in the future. Whether or not they detract from the Deus Ex feel will depend entirely on their quality and tone. So far the cutscenes we've seen haven't instilled me with a lot of confidence. The Tong one certainly wasn't great, but it wasn't all that bad, either. The Barrette scene on the other hand... well, I just hate what we've seen of Barrette in general, so it's hard to be properly objective.

[WildcatPhoenix]

My question is this: when you refer to the "camera" in a video game, what are you referring to?

A game that strives for immersion/simulation/whatever-you-want-to-call-it uses the "camera" to show what the player character is seeing with his/her own two eyes.

Using the infamous vent scene for example, how does Adam manage to see that close to Tong's face? The camera seems to be placed directly on Tong's desk, meaning that for Adam to see what we see, he'd have to be hiding next to Tong or standing in plain view. The audience, or player, is getting access to visual information that our supposed avatar, Adam Jensen, should not have access to.

Cinematic, yes, but not immersive. It makes me feel like I am watching Adam Jensen, not being Adam Jensen.

[Nyysjan]

Originally Posted by WildcatPhoenix

Cinematic, yes, but not immersive. It makes me feel like I am watching Adam Jensen, not being Adam Jensen.

Bingo.

[Pretentious Old Man.]

Originally Posted by WildcatPhoenix

Cinematic, yes, but not immersive. It makes me feel like I am watching Adam Jensen, not being Adam Jensen.

You're doing neither: you're just growing up with the industry.



<We can turn this into a meme if we really try.

[WildcatPhoenix]

Originally Posted by Pretentious Old Man.

You're doing neither: you're just growing up with the industry.



<We can turn this into a meme if we really try.

Hehehe, this must be done.

[AxiomaticBadger]

The disconnect may be intentional.

In your usual fps, you are presented with a blank slate. DE was similar. Sure, JC had a history, but he wasn't exactly personality of the year.

With Adam we're being given a defined character to control, an effect enhanced via 3rd person.
Just a thought.


OT: @Pretentious Old Man:- You, uh, know that the Matrix doesn't have anything to do with transhumanism, right?

[Pretentious Old Man.]

Originally Posted by WildcatPhoenix

Hehehe, this must be done.

It is settled. Let the memeage commence.

[Pretentious Old Man.]

Originally Posted by AxiomaticBadger

Pretentious Old Man:- You, uh, know that the Matrix doesn't have anything to do with transhumanism, right?

Correct, but I class them under the same banner of sanctimonious garbage.

[WildcatPhoenix]

Originally Posted by AxiomaticBadger

With Adam we're being given a defined character to control, an effect enhanced via 3rd person.
Just a thought.

Maybe so. But if this is the case, then we have absolutely stepped away from the core of Deus Ex, that same core the PR types from Eidos would want us to believe they have so carefully preserved.

We will be watching a story unfold in Human Revolution (perhaps even a good story?), but we will only be participating in about half of it. Make no mistake, boys and girls, there are going to be a TON of cutscenes in this game. It's being co-designed by Square Enix. We've already seen cutscenes of:

1. The dive out the window as bomb explodes, "boyscout," etc.
2. Adam tries to stop a hacker, who shoots himself in the head.
3. Vent shaft eavesdropping.
4. Adam falling out a window as some lady screams.
5. Adam using the "Icarus landing system" to land in the street.
6. Barrett yelling "you'll never find him" and shooting.

I've probably forgotten (or mentally blocked) some more. I can hear the protests already. "Hey, these are just from the trailers! There's no evidence these will actually be in the game!" I disagree. I don't think Square Enix spent all that time developing a lot of those scenes just for them to appear in a brief trailer. These are going to appear in the game, along with incessant 3rd person takedowns, 3rd person convos (a holdover from the original games that I would prefer to go away), and 3rd person augmentations.

You will be watching a movie. Probably a cool, visually interesting, action-packed movie. Nothing terribly wrong with that; films like The Bourne Ultimatum, The Italian Job, Mission Impossible III, etc are fun and skillfully made (not trying to start a movie debate, just using examples). But those are movies. The audience doesn't believe they are Jason Bourne. They don't personally perform any of those stunts, or fight any of those assassins, or talk their way past a guard. They just sit back and observe.

So get ready to sit back and observe some really cool cutscenes.